


Let There Be Peace

by dramaticinsanity



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Christmas, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Humanized, Minor Background Relationships, Past Jasper/Lapis Lazuli - Freeform, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:22:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21956584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dramaticinsanity/pseuds/dramaticinsanity
Summary: Peridot invites Jasper over for the holidays.
Relationships: Bismuth/Lapis Lazuli (Steven Universe), Pearl/Peridot (Steven Universe)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Let There Be Peace

**Author's Note:**

> Rushed to finish this in time, so there might be mistakes I'll fix later. Enjoy!

“You’ll come? Really?” Peridot bounces excitedly on the couch. “Thank you! Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!” 

The voice on the other side says, “You’ve said that every time you’ve ended a call or left my presence since the beginning of the month. Could you tone it down?”

“I know and I’ll tell you it again next time!”

Peridot hangs up, grinning. She turns. She promptly leaps off the couch like a terrified cat and screeches like one too. Pearl is standing there, bent close to her face, hands folded behind her back. 

“How are you this stealthy?!” Peridot tugs at her sweater, suspecting she knows what’s coming. Pearl is a tad nosy.

“War. I was a soldier,” Pearl answers, expressionless. “Who was on the phone?”

She has to play it cool. She shoves her hands in her lap and straightens her spine.

“No one! What phone?”

That’s just playing it dumb, too dumb. She mentally facepalms. Pearl smirks. She swipes her phone and waggles it in front of her nose. “This one.”

“I… look it doesn’t matter. It was just um… an old friend.” She reaches for the remote. Pearl gently grips her wrist.

“Peridot. What did we say about lying? I can tell when you’re hiding something because you think someone will flip out.”

Peridot cringes. “Considering I surround myself with people capable of easily beating me up! Lapis knows martial arts, Bismuth’s muscles are bigger than my entire body, you know twenty different ways to painfully incapacitate someone with one hand tied behind your back -”

“Thirty one, actually.” Pearl releases her hold. She settles primly on the couch. She takes Peridot’s hand in both of hers. “But do you really think…  _ would _ we? You can talk to me.”

Peridot takes a deep breath. She reminds herself that her friends aren’t like that. They won’t hurt her, even if she upsets them.

“I invited Jasper.”

“So? She always comes over to see us and Steven after -”

“For  _ during _ Christmas day.”

They only observe Christmas because Lapis and Amethyst grew up with it, and Steven took a shine to it when Greg told him about his mother celebrating it. Though they don’t really subscribe to the religious aspects, the spirit of it is nice. Spending a special occasion with all their friends and family, putting aside work distractions, decorating, singing songs, feasting, being excessively cheerful, trading presents - Peridot has even come to enjoy the ritual. 

Jasper usually hangs out here the day after Christmas. Amethyst gets on Jasper’s nerves, Jasper gets on Lazuli’s nerves, and they all give Bismuth a migraine, then Ruby inevitably ends up in a yelling match with someone which makes Sapphire cry - prompting their daughter Garnet to punch the nearest person. It’s definitely  _ not _ in the spirit of the holiday. 

Peridot rubs her nose at the distant memory of accidentally moving in the path of said fist, a curse of her short stature that even a young teenager had towered over her. At least she’s gotten better at controlling her anger. Peridot and Pearl would quietly charter Steven out of the room so we wouldn’t witness the chaos. 

They’ve stopped inviting her, but the last incident was eight years ago. Steven is a mid-teen now, he can handle family drama, and they’re all a lot calmer. 

“I see.” Pearl glances to the side. “You think she’s ready?”

“We had a  _ long _ talk… the last time we had coffee. She knows the score. It’s everyone else I’m worried about. If she pisses off Lapis, it’ll probably be game over no matter what. I’d rather not tell her beforehand, then she’ll build it up and explode.”

Pearl sighs. “You’re right. She’ll convince herself she won’t be able to deal with it, prepare for Jasper to do the tiniest thing wrong… and it’ll become a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

There’s nothing for it. They’ll just have to move forward and hope for the best. Pearl cups Peridot’s cheek and strokes with her thumb. Peridot leans into the touch and smiles. It is a relief, the admittance.

“Thank you for telling me.”

“I’m trying…”

Pearl kisses her. That goes on for a while, before Peridot breaks it to peel her jacket from her shoulders. She breathes on Pearl’s ear and questions, “Wanna make love?”

Steven is at Connie’s, might as well take advantage. Pearl giggles. 

“Right here on the couch?”

“... Sure. Why not? We can disinfect it.”

“Oh my stars, you…”

Pearl pushes her down and kisses her deep. Peridot arches against her.

//

Christmas day feels like it arrives too soon for Peridot. Obviously, Steven is excited. Having him around is infectious, making cheerfulness come easy. Peridot is glad that he’s over with them from Christmas Eve day until New Year’s morning. 

This year, the Maheswarans will be joining them. Hopefully, that will be an extra incentive for everyone to be on their best behavior. Peridot hangs a mistletoe. She flinches in surprise when hands materialize on her sensitive ribs. 

Her stomach swoops as she’s tugged from the latter. She’s briefly in the air before being brought to safety into Pearl’s arms. She laughs as Pearl swings her around and dips her, claiming her lips for a kiss under the plant. 

“You always have to make us the first ones!”

Pearl grins and slides her fingers through Peridot’s hair, making her unruly short mane even worse. “Of course.”

Pearl continues, “Remember when we were starting to date in college and had that clumsy first kiss under the mistletoe, at the holiday mixer?”

“Yeah.” Peridot blushes. “I was so shy around you back then.”

Pearl scratches her chin, “I wonder why…”

“Really? Because you’re built like a model and a genius to boot? Plus… my self esteem was in the pits those days.”

“Oh, honestly. I thought you were way prettier and smarter than I could ever be.” Pearl grins, her eyes sparkling. “I clearly remember it - when you said that the mistletoe isn’t legally binding and it’s toxic, thus the tradition is uncouth anyway.”

“Then you almost jabbed me in the eye with your nose! I thought I’d match Professor Grey, and she’d kick me out of class, thinking I was making a sick joke,” Peridot adds.

“Please, you just didn’t have your head at the correct angle!”

“Well, if you hadn’t smelled like fresh sugar cookies and mint, I wouldn’t have been distracted.”

“Blame it all on me,” Pearl complains, crossing her arms. “Everything is my fault because I come from a family of servants!”

They maintain matching glares for all of ten strained seconds before bursting into laughter. Peridot leans on Pearl as she struggles to stop. When Peridot regains her senses she blurts, “I love you.”

“And I never get tired of hearing it.” 

Peridot chuckles at Pearl’s use of their inside joke version of ‘love you too’. They used to drive their old roommates and professors crazy with their flirtatious bickering. It’s lessened over many years, but their mutual adoration has not. Peridot tilts her head -  _ correctly _ \- to place a light kiss on Pearl’s lips. 

Steven charges forward. “Me next!”

They oblige, Pearl kissing him on the forehead, and Peridot giving him a light kiss on the cheek. He grins and hugs them both, before running into another room. Peridot shakes her head. He has too much energy. They bounce around for the rest of the day, finishing preparations with occasional breaks. 

The Maheswarans beat Bismuth as the usual first one to arrive. She won’t be pleased to lose her title, but she’ll likely take it in stride. Pearl awkwardly greets them - their interactions have been too few for her to warm up yet. Peridot gives them a tour and endures some small talk. Connie tackles Steven, and they sit on the floor in front of the TV to watch Rudolph, which will likely be followed by Nightmare Before Christmas later. Peridot always records them and queues them up.

The next doorbell heralds Bismuth. She carries a dish in each arm, stomping in and setting them down on the island. She has a satchel of gifts around her shoulder. There’s now a trail of snowy footprints slowly melting into the carpet and hardwood floor. 

“Bismuth,” Pearl reprimands, tugging on her hair. “Why do you never remove or wipe your boots?!”

“Psh.”

“Bismuth!”

Peridot chortles into her hand at her wife’s troubles. Peridot slides in to engage Bismuth with idle chatter while Pearl hastily cleans the mess. Peridot has no room to judge, as she fretted over decor and plans a week ago because they would have guests to impress - even though they’re all close friends. Ruby, Sapphire, and Garnet arrive a few minutes later. Garnet has a wife now, in Rhodonite, along with their five year old daughter, Paddy. Peridot can’t believe Garnet is twenty-six years or that Sapphire is starting to gray. The hot and cold pair are still as loving and flirty as spring chickens, Peridot hopes that’s the future for her and Pearl. 

Greg isn’t far behind, and he stutters an apology for being late that is waved off. He isn’t even last to arrive this time. He soon enters conversation with the others, all gathered in the kitchen as not to disturb the teen humans. Steven gets testy when adults talk too loud around his programs.

Half an hour passes before Lapis and Amethyst appear at the same time. The roommates are already chatting about a show they both watch as Pearl ushers them inside.

“I thought it was a reasonable way to appease both sides,” Lapis says. “Both relationships had a strong and vocal fanbase. Canonization takes the fun out of it anyway.”

Amethyst throws up her arms. “Are you kidding me? No one is really happy with the arrangement - except nutters like you. They should’ve just stuck to their guns. If you try to please everyone, it’ll be a disappointment.”   
  


“Whatever. You’re just an anti, that’s why you wanted the pairing sunk!”

“You’re the one who sent me that rude ask aren’t you? I should’ve known!”

“Well, you reblogged my art with the comment ‘though this ship kinda sucks, the message here is beautiful and I admire your shading skills’, what the hell?”

“It’s a compliment!”

“A backhanded one!”

Peridot and Pearl share a concerned glanced over their arguing friends. Neither of them dares to get between the two when they’re chomping at their bits. 

Amethyst scoffs, “You should be flattered your painting made me stomach that trash ship on my blog -”

“Trash?! Your ship barely got along! They tried to kill each other… twice!”

“That’s what made it interesting, duh. You play it safe with boring, predictable shit.”

“I just… I appreciate stability, trust, and security, okay.”

Amethyst looks chagrined by this response. She rubs the back of her head, portraying a rare moment of being speechless. Lapis examines her fingernails, probably trying to decide how to pick back up to get rid of the awkward silence.

Pearl chimes in from a pointed distance, “You’re nineteen, Amethyst, Lapis is twenty-eight. Yet you’re arguing about an imaginary relationship in a cartoon that just ended like my parents did with politics?”

“Stay out of this, boomer,” Amethyst responds, causing Lapis to snort.

Peridot knows she won’t appreciate that, as she had very conservative parents who were born at the tail end of that time. Amethyst is comparatively young, and she recently started college. Though they’re capable of getting along, Amethyst is good at rubbing her the wrong way. 

“I’m only thirty four!”

“Then don’t act senile. Cartoons are for all ages!”

It reminds her of her heated debates with Lapis about Camp Pining Hearts when they shared a room on the college campus. Peridot was a nearly burned out senior running on fumes, Lapis was a bright eyed new student seeing it as an escape from oppressive home life. She misses that, and they’ve kind of drifted apart since then. She doesn’t miss Lapis constantly teasing her about her crush on Pearl, though. Pearl had been a Teaching Assistant, which was intimidating to Peridot, despite that Peridot often came up with excuses to seek her “help” with lessons. 

Pearl moved on shortly before Peridot graduated, but she returned for the pre-graduation mixer. Wherein, their budding relationship of dancing around each other on their toes became something worth writing home about. She smiles at the ceiling in fond reminiscence. She squeezes Pearl’s shoulder, whose unfocused eyes suggest she was on a similar track. 

However, the tables have turned. Amethyst bursts into the living room to greet Steven and Connie before flopping on the couch. Bismuth breaks away from the group and approaches. Lapis is staring a bit hard at her own hand.

“Hey Laz, you alright?”

Lapis drops her arm. She allows her bangs to fall in front of her eyes as her cheeks darken. 

“I mean, it’s none of my  _ Bismuth _ , but if you need to talk about anything, I’m a good listener.”

Lapis chuckles. “Um… I’ll be fine, but thanks.”

Her fingers briefly brush Bismuth’s arm. She jerks away as though shocked at her own actions. She stiffly walks into the living room. Bismuth watches after her for a moment before sighing and walking away. 

Pearl rolls her eyes and mutters to Peridot, “Will those two ever -?”

“I don’t know. Lapis is afraid of herself and Bismuth is afraid to overstep and come on too strong.”

About forty minutes pass without incident. Dinner is nearly prepared and everyone except Pearl, Peridot, and Greg who is lending a hand, are seated. There was a time that Pearl nor Peridot participated in such gatherings.

Peridot’s eyes roam the faces. It’s hard to believe everyone has managed to march on after  _ her _ death, since it was once a source of much turmoil. She’s grateful to enjoy the peaceful spoils brought by Pink turning on her own due to her love for Greg. She doesn’t know what would’ve happened if her snooping around had resulted in a full scale war.

There is still a lingering sadness in his eyes sometimes. Pink died protecting him and their son. Radicals had tried to kill them as punishment for Pink’s ‘betrayal’ of her country. They hated her for that, and for starting a rebellion in her homeland under a secret identity. Peridot brushes her hand through Steven’s curls in passing. She knows he and Connie are looking forward to her and Pearl’s cooking. The child’s existence had taken a toll on Pink, causing her to fall ill and be less wary. Somehow, Greg never held it against Pearl for withholding information.

The same can’t be said for Pearl. In current times, they lean against the counter, laughing at some probably food or holiday related joke one of them made. She adores Steven now and gets along with Greg. Nonetheless, she once despised them and blamed them for her beloved commander’s death. Peridot hadn’t thought Pearl capable of such vitriol until it happened. Peridot is relieved she eventually overcame that with a lot of help along the way.

Banishing the images of a dim past, she kisses Pearl’s hand for no other reason than to reaffirm affections. Pearl smudges mashed potatoes on her face with a spoon. Peridot darts to the other side of the kitchen, chased by Pearl. 

“I made a mess, now I have to clean it up!”

“No! NO!”

Peridot squirms in her grip, and Pearl giggles before licking a stripe from her nose to her forehead gem to clean off the potatoes. It’s hard to believe she was serious and no nonsense in her young adulthood. Peridot supposes her influence brought out a silly side in Pearl she didn’t know she had.

Barely anyone glances their way, accustomed to such shenanigans. 

Greg is wiping his hands on a towel as he pipes up, “So will Tourmaline and Olivine be joining us this year?”

“No Greg,” Pearl responds, sobering at the mention of the preteen twins. “Apparently, they’ve ‘outgrown’ us. They can rarely be bothered with their stodgy parents since qualifying for the private school.”

Peridot winces at Pearl’s brisk tone. Greg doesn’t seem perturbed. “Oh. That’s too bad. I’m sure they’ll get homesick and come around.”

Peridot says, “We have received communications. The school has taken academic trip for the winter break with the students who did not return home.”

“Cool. Lots of reports?”

“Oh tons, quite detailed, they get that from me,” Peridot replies, lifting her chin.

“Oh yeah,” Lapis adds. “I remember the nerdy messages you recorded to yourself in college. You had to erase a lot because you kept gushing about Pearl.”

Peridot flushes. “Nerdy messa - they were reports and notes! For lessons!”

“If you say so.”

“Oh oh! Was it like - log date 69 I’m a nerd but I can’t pay attention to lessons because I keep thinking about Pearl’s butt,” Amethyst mocks in a nasally voice, face split by a wide, toothy grin. 

Chuckles ripple across the table as Peridot turns away and crosses her arms, indignant. To Amethyst, Lapis answers, “Got it in one.”

Pearl nearly spills the drink she’s pouring into someone’s cup from laughing too hard. Peridot shoots daggers at her. Pearl places her hands on Peridot’s shoulders and bends to kiss her cheek. 

“You know she’s only messing with you,” Pearl murmurs below the hearing range of the guests. “You’re adorable when you’re ruffled.”

Peridot relaxes a little. She wasn’t truly angry, Lapis just has a way of getting under her skin. It’s a sore spot, due to how rejected she was in school and college, even by other genius level peers, due to her intellectual quirks, and the overinflated ego she used to have to mask her anxiety. She accepts that Lapis views herself as playful, but Peridot would prefer her to not inspire others to join in, such as the hot headed Amethyst.

Lapis knows which buttons will really set her off and avoids them. Others are unaware. Pearl snatches a gravy pitcher from the cupboard and hands it off. Peridot chews her lip as she fills the pitcher. Jasper, as Pink’s bodyguard, had also been deeply affected by the loss of Pink. She took it as a personal failure and didn’t cope well. 

Maybe Jasper decided not to show after all. 

Then, there’s a certain patterned knock on the door that interrupts the flow of conversation. Eerie silence befalls the room in an instant. Bismuth’s eyes widen. Ruby and Sapphire share a disturbed look. Garnet’s fingers freeze above her phone screen. Lapis clenches her fists on top of the table, her body shaking.

Amethyst jumps and yelps, “Sis?!”

Jasper and Amethyst don’t share blood, but they grew up at separate times in the same sad, crusty foster home. Both were abandoned by their parents. Even after outgrowing the place, Jasper frequently visited to help with the unruly orphans. For Amethyst, that’s good enough, though Jasper was a jerk to her for many years whenever their paths crossed. Amethyst isn’t the only one who partly missed Jasper’s appearances, despite the drama.

Steven spills from his chair and bolts to the door, throwing it open. “Jasper?! No one told me you were coming!”

“Well here I am, for better or worse.”

Lapis stands, knocking her chair over. She points accusingly at the hosts. “Why is she here? Why didn’t you warn me?”

Peridot grabs Pearl’s hand and squeezes. Pearl squeezed back. Peridot manages, “It was all my idea. Also, I - I didn’t want you to freak out or not visit with us -”

Lapis bangs her fist on the table, causing the Maheswarans, who are new to Lazuli’s temper, to startle. “I  _ am _ freaking out, goddamnit!”

Lapis shakes her head and tears fall down her cheeks. She sprints out of the kitchen and barrels up the stairs. 

“That was touch unnecessary,” Priyanka grumbles. Doug strokes her hand to calm her. Connie sinks in her seat. 

“I’m sure it’ll be handled,” Doug reassures. “At least no one threw a vase at my head like when we visited your family!”

Jasper glances between the stairs and table. She says, “I’ll go talk to her.”

She promptly trudges up the steps. Peridot silently prays they don’t break anything or each other. Pearl claps her hands once.

“Nevermind them! Shall we?”

Eventually, the two reappear just after eating began. Lapis has red-rimmed eyes, but she doesn’t look like a storm brewing to rip off the roof. Jasper seems oddly pensive. They don’t acknowledge the other during the meal. Steven talk’s Jasper’s ear off while Amethyst and Garnet trade keeping Lapis distracted. Thankfully, no fights break out during dinner as in the past. It’s progress and promising for the future.

Later, as presents are being opened, Bismuth whispers, “What made you think this was a good idea?”

“I just,” Peridot rubs her face and answers, “thought they couldn’t avoid this forever. I knew Lapis would have never agreed to - they needed this, one way or another.”

“I’m kinda biased I guess. I hate seeing Lapis upset.”

“Cause you love her.”

“Shut up, tiny.”

Peridot smirks. “You are not subtle, you know that right?”

“Not trying to hide it.” Bismuth shrugs. “I’m too worn, too old for her. The shit I’ve seen…”

“Don’t give me your dumb excuses. You’re not going to scare her off.”

Peridot feels fingers digging into her shoulder. Pearl is behind her, looking about to panic. She has a spray bottle clutched in her other hand. The plastic creaks. They turn to see the source of her anxiety. Lapis has moved to stand in Jasper’s path. Her expression is unclear. Garnet and Amethyst draw closer, ready to intervene. Firmly, Lapis states, “I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve what I - I shouldn’t have taken my anger, my pain out on you.”

Peridot knows in her gut Lapis wasn’t talking about any of the previous Christmas mini-wars that took place here. Peridot doesn’t know all the details, just enough to understand their relationship had been complicated and borderline abusive. They’d been really bad for each other, getting together at a time when both had terrible unaddressed issues. 

Jasper nods. “I shouldn’t have… pushed you, convinced you to alienate yourself. I was awful to manipulate you or relish and encourage your uncontrolled rage. I’m sorry too.”

There’s a stretch of silence. Amethyst barks, “Yo! You’re under the mistletoe! If you don’t kiss, Santa won’t come next year.”

Ignorant of the tension, little Paddy cries, “No! My presents!”

Lapis grits her teeth as she glances upward. Jasper doesn’t appear impressed. Gruffly, she says, “I’ll be making a substitution.”

She yanks Bismuth by the arm and shoves her in her place. She takes off into the living room with a pie dish that has three slices left. Amethyst is unfazed, and she whistles. 

“Yeah come on! Get it Bis!”

Lazuli’s cheeks light up brighter than the tree. She doesn’t meet Bismuth’s eyes. Bismuth rubs her own arm and shifts from foot to foot.

Bismuth mumbles, “We don’t have to if you - I understand if you don’t want to -”

Never meeting her gaze, Lapis tugs her by the collar, closes her eyes, and kisses her. Amethyst cheers. Garnet snaps a picture. Steven and Connie applaud. When they part, Lapis hides her deeply flushed face with her hands while Bismuth walks with her to the kitchen.

“About time,” Peridot says. 

It’s something they’ve been waiting for since Bismuth caught the bouquet at their wedding and smiled yearningly at Lapis beside her. Lapis had smiled in return, yet neither of them had made a move until now. Pearl collapses on the floor behind the couch. Peridot crawls into her lap like they have turned into their younger, naive selves that don’t realize they’re smitten. Pearl melts as Peridot nuzzles her neck and breathes the comfortable scent.

“This could’ve gone better,” Pearl remarks. 

“But it could’ve been a lot worse. At least Lapis and Jasper finally made peace with themselves and their difficult past.”

“I’m grateful for that. If she can be around more often, Steven will be happy to see her when he visits us.”

Peridot diverts, “Don’t mess this up Lapis. She and Bismuth need to get married so I can fawn over you in formalwear and give you head in the restroom like a horny adolescent.”

Pearl giggles. “You can do that anyway.”

“But there’d be something special about the look on Lazuli’s face when she sees us mussed up in the middle of her wedding reception.”

“I’m certain she’d tear you a new one,” Pearl says, her tone light. “I wonder if they’ll get any kids? It’d be nice to have more little ones around again. Garnet lives so far away…”

Peridot nods. Their daughters are smart and capable, they’ll probably do great things. However, every day of every year Peridot aches and misses when they were small, innocent, and dependent on them. Thinking of kids, Peridot tears herself from Pearl to pluck Paddy from the floor and twirls her around. She goes off to show Paddy some other holiday traditions to pass the time. 

Before the night ends, there are a few notable events. 

Jasper unintentionally breaks a figurine, which Pearl hassles her into sweeping. Connie admits she thinks her dad’s sweater is ugly, much to his dismay and his wife’s amusement. Lapis snuggles with Bismuth to watch a comedy called Elf. The two laugh uproariously, flawlessly quoting lines, as they come to realize they share it as their favorite movie. 

Amethyst mercilessly teases them until Garnet smacks her upside the head. Ruby and Sapphire try to give each other the last slice of pie, but Greg ends the backward argument when he distractedly takes it, not even noticing their dilemma. Peridot has to stop the teens from trying to sneak upstairs, wherein Steven claims he wanted to show Connie one of his new games - Peridot pats his hair and points to the couch. Peridot was an overeager teen once herself, and he isn’t slick.

All in all, the holiday is tied up with a calm evening. 


End file.
